Machine for pressing slabs for rolling



Oct. 31, 1933. R Q T, JR 1,932,504

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SLABS FOR R'OLLING' Filed Aug. -6. 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 NI i' I'WII'NESS' INVENTO R I The slab-pressing apparatus preferably com-' Patented Oct. 31, 1933 MACHINE FOR PRESSING SLABS FOR ROLLING 7 Florence O. Biggert, Jr., Grafton, Pa., assignor to United Engineering & Foundry Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application August 6, 1931. Serial No. 555,492

8 Claims. (01. 29-35) This invention relates to mills for rolling slabs of metal, whether ferrous or non-ferrous, into fiat materials such as plates, sheets, strips, stripsheets, etc., all. of which are herein designated as sheets. While the invention may be used in various metal rolling procedures, it is particularly applicable to the continuous rolling of strips or strip-sheets, and is so illustrated and described herein.

In the rolling of sheets, the prevailing practice is to first roll ingots or blooms into long slabs which are cut into lengths depending upon the metal required in the sheets to be rolled from them. Because the slabs have square or substantially square ends, and parallel sides, the hot rolling of them results in a lateral spreading of the metal at the ends, which makes it necessary to crop substantial end portions to produce sheets having uniform widths from end to end.

To eliminate or materially reduce the scrap loss due to end cropping, the object of this invention is to provide a sheet-rolling mill with simple and efiective apparatus for tapering .or otherwise shaping the ends of hot slabs without prejudicial interruption of the normal rolling procedure, the apparatus 'being adjustable to shape slabs of different widths and lengths.

The invention is somewhat diagrammatically illustrated in the accompanying drawings, of which Fig. 1 is a plan View of the discharge end of a continuous heating or heat-holding furnace, a continuous sheet-rolling mill, a roller conveyor leading from the furnace to the mill, and a slabshaping apparatus associated with the conveyor; Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the slabshaping apparatus, the plane of view being indicated by the line II--II, Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is an end view of the apparatus showing the slab-positioning stop in raised position.

In the practice of this invention, there is associated with a roll conveyor, preferably that extending from a furnace to a rolling mill, apparatus for pressing the sides of hot slabs prior to their being rolled, the pressing preferably being at the ends of the slabs to so taper them that their ends will not become widened while being rolled.

prises two pairs of cooperating press dies, the elements of each pair being positioned upon and operated and controlled from the opposite sides of the conveyor. To properly position slabs for pressing their ends, the apparatus includes a removable stop against which the forward ends of slabs abut as they are moved longitudinally by the conveyor. The apparatus also includes means for adjusting the relative positions of the press dies in two directions so that the ends of slabs of different lengths and widths may be properly shaped.

.I-Iaving reference to the illustrative embodiment of the invention, a roll table 1 is shown extending from the discharge end of a heating or heat-holding furnace 2 to the first stand of rolls 3 of a continuous sheet-rolling mill. The rolls of table 1 may be driven in any suitable manner as by bevel pinions 4 connected to their ends and meshing with bevel pinions 5 keyed to a drive shaft 6. In the normal operation of a mill such as this, heated slabs from furnace 2 are carried by roll table 1 to the rolling mill without interruption. I

To shape the ends of slabs so that they will not spread laterally while being rolled, and to do this without material interruption in the movements of the slabs and consequent loss of heat, a press is associated with the forward end of the conveyor. The press herein shown comprises frames 7 and 8 arranged on opposite sides of the roll table. The table rolls 9, between these frames, are journalled in bearings 10 of the frames and may be driven by bevel pinions 11 secured to their ends and meshing with bevel pinions 12 keyed to shaft 6. A slab 13 being conveyed from furnace 2 to rolls 3 of the sheet-rolling mill must therefore pass between frames 7 and 8.

The frames are provided with upright portions 14 extending upwardly and outwardly from the top thereof. Resting on top of the frames between upright portions 14 and the roll table are die-carrying heads 15 and 16 adapted to be adjusted or reciprocated toward and away from the center line of rolls 9. Head 15 is normally stationary, but can be moved backwardly or forwardly to vary the distance between it and head 16 to enable the press to accommodate slabs of varying widths. This is done by means of shafts 17 threaded through and rotatably connected to head 15 as by enlarged ends 18 resting in slots 19. Crank handles 20 are secured to the outer ends of these shafts to permit them to be manually 100 operated.

Wedge-shaped dies 21, having somewhat curved faces, by means of which the ends of a slab are tapered, are attached to the working surfaces 22 of the die-carrying heads. The dies at the 105 nalled in the heads as at 25 and 26. The pur- 110 pose of this is to so adjust the press as to enable it to operate upon slabs of different lengths. The mounting at 25 is similar to that of shafts 17 in head 15. Cover plates 27 can be placed over uprights 14 and the die-carrying heads to enclose the moving parts.

To operate the press, head 16 is reciprocated over frame 8 toward and away from the center line of the roll table. This is preferably accomplished by means of eccentrics 28 which are keyed to shaft 29 driven by motor 30, and which act upon head 16 through a link 50 in a well known manner. A slab resting upon rolls 9 between the two die-carrying heads is thus pressed between themwhen the eccentrics push head 16 toward head 15.

Of course it is necessary that the forward movement of a slab over'the roll table be arrested, and that the slab be properly positioned longitudinally of the press, before the' tapering operation can be effected. Both of these things may be done by providing at the mill end of the press a disappearing stop 31 which engages a slab in correct position and prevents it from moving forwardly until the taper pressing has been completed. As illustrated in Fig. 3, the stop may be pivotally attached to a bell crank lever 32 pivoted at its fulcrum on a shaft 33 journalled in brackets 34 secured to the base of frame 8. A cam 35, keyed to shaft 29, raises the stop, which normally remains below the top of the roll table in guideway 51, into the path of oncoming slabs by pressing the end of lever 32 downwardly. The stop need only be in its raised position for a moment, because it is preferable, in order to make a clean taper, that the slab be raised aboverolls 9 while being pressed to eliminate interference between the dies and rolls. This may be accomplished by providing shaft 29 with a cam 36 which acts on a lever 37 secured to shaft 33, as shown in Fig. 2. Levers 38 also are secured to this shaft near each end of the press their opposite ends supporting lifting fingers 39 which are moved vertically in guideways 40 when cam 36 a tuates lever 37. The cam is secured to its shaft in such position that it causes the lifting fingers to be in their uppermost position as the press dies approach a slab 13 which the fingers lift and support between the dies. It is apparent that stop 31 need be in its raised position only until the slab has been lifted out of contact with rolls 9, for then there is nothing to cause the slab to move forward.

To adjust the press for operating upon slabs of a given length amd width, eccentrics 28 may be turned until head 16 is in its most forward position,-and then the distance between this head and head 15 is made to conform to the required width by properly rotating cranks 20. The space from the front to the rear shaping dies is made to conform to the length of a slab by rotating crank shafts 24 in alike manner.

A hot slab 13, fed from furnace 2 over the roll table, passes onto rolls 9 between frames 7 and 8 while the die heads are farthest apart and the lifting fingers are below the rotating table rolls. Stop 31 then projects above the rolls at the far end of the press and intercepts the movement of the slab over the rolls. While held in correct position by the stop, shaft 29, which is then rotated by starting motor 30, causes the eccentrics to push head 16 toward its cooperating head. At

the same time, the lifting fingers 39 start their upward movement to engage the slab and lift it above the rolls. When they reach their uppermost position the tapering dies engage the ends of the slab and press them into tapered shape. The eccentrics then pull head 16 away from the slab which descends on the downwardly moving fingers to rolls 9. At a suitable point in the raising of the slab, stop 31 drops below the rolls so that when the tapered slab comes in contact with them again it may be carried forwardly and into the rolling mill. Stop 31 then rises into position ready to interrupt the travel of the next succeeding slab over the roll table.

By placing such a press directly between the furnace and the rolling mill time and space are saved, because the hot slabs issuing from the furnace need not be reheated but pass directly into the rolling mill with but a moments pause while they are being tapered. After the preliminary adjustments, this press requires practically no attention, for it is substantially automatic. In addition to tapering the ends of slabs, the press also functions to align the slabs for entry into the first pass of the rolling mill.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, I have explained the principle and mode of operation of my invention and have illustrated and described what I now consider to represent its best embodiment. However, I desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described. I

I claim:

1. The combination with a sheet-rolling mill, a heating furnace, and means for conveying heated slabs from the furnace to the mill; of laterally movable dies associated with said conveyor for pressing the sides of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof.

2. The combination with a sheet-rolling mill, a heating furnace, and means for conveying heated slabs from the furnace to the mill; of laterally movable dies associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing the ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof.

3. The combination with a sheet-rolling mill, a heating furnace, and means for conveying heated slabs from the furnace to the mill; of means associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing the ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including mechanism for elevating a slab above the conveyor, and movable dies for pressing the ends of the slab while in its elevated position.

4. The combination with a sheet-rolling mill, a heating furnace, and. means for conveying heated slabs from the furnace to the mill; of means associated with said conveyor for pressing the sides of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including a movable stop for arresting the movement of a slab on the conveyor and positioning it for pressing, means for elevating the slab above the conveyor, and movable dies for pressing the slab.

5. The combination with a sheet-rolling mill, a heating furnace, and means for conveying heated slabs from the furnace to the mill; of means associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing.

the ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including mechanism for elevating a slab above the conveyor, movable dies for pressing the ends of the slab while in its elevated position, and means for adjusting 'the relative positions of said dies.

6. The combination with a roller table for conveying heated slabs to a rolling mill, of means associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing both ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including two pairs of oppositely disposed dies, means for adjusting the relative positions of said dies for pressing the ends of different sized slabs, and means for efiecting relative slab-pressing movements between said dies in their variably adjusted position.

7. The combination with a roller table for conveying heated slabs to a rolling mill, of means associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing both ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including mechanism for elevating a slab above said conveyor, two pairs of oppositely disposed dies, means for adjusting the relative positions of said dies in two directions for pressing the ends of slabs of different widths and lengths, and means for efiecting relative slabpressing movements between said dies in their variably adjusted positions.

8. The combination with a roller table for conveying heated slabs to a rolling mill, of means associated with said conveyor for taper-pressing both ends of hot slabs prior to the rolling thereof, said means including a movable stop for arresting the movement of a slab on the conveyor and positioning it for pressing, mechanism for elevating a slab above said conveyor, two pairs of oppositely disposed dies, means for adjusting the relative positions of said dies in two directions for pressing the ends of slabs of different widths and lengths, and means for efieoting relative slab-pressing movements between said dies in their variably adjusted positions.

FLORENCE C. BIGGERT, JR. 

